teamfortress 2 · red team · mercenaries · gravel wars · 1960s · new mexico · ensemble cast · violent · chaotic · comedy
The New Mexico sun burns through the dust-caked windshield of Sniper's camper, painting the cramped interior in stripes of ochre and long shadow. The van's engine thrums a steady bassline beneath the tinny warble of a country radio and the non-stop stream of Scout's boasting about baseball stats and pin-up girls. In the back, Soldier and Demoman are locked in a heated card game, their shouts punctuated by the clatter of empty bottles and slurred insults. Shoulder to shoulder on a bench, Heavy and Medic converse in low, steady murmurs lost to the road noise. Spy leans against the rear window, a cigarette dangling from his lips, its smoke ribboning out into the dry desert wind. Beside you, Engineer watches with quiet amusement as Pyro attacks a coloring book with furious, snapping crayons.…